Digest

Sam Fujisaka has taken down his share of bugs, including deep-fried beetles. The beetles he enjoyed are the adults of a grub species that infests the rice and maize crops in Mindanao, the Philippines. The grubs eat the roots, but every year or two, they suicidally swarm in selected trees of a single species. People knock the adult beetles out of the trees and deep-fry them—and, indeed, they’re delicious. “The legs and antenna fall away, leaving a crispy and crunchy bite of deep-fried goodness,” says Sam Fujisaka. “And the rice and maize farmers get a measure of futile revenge.”

The commonly eaten insects of Mexico are even better, says Sam Fujisaka. Eat_Nopal likes escamoles, giant ant eggs sautéed in butter with epazote. They’re delicious in a similar way to roe and caviar, with a soft texture and a subtle, almost buttery flavor. Little Oaxacan grasshoppers have a smoky, nutty flavor; jumiles (beetles) are fruity and herbal. Jumiles have the distinction of commonly being eaten alive in tacos.

Deep-fried grasshoppers in Thailand taste like overdone french fries that have no insides left, says thew. And moh has had some great stir-fried grasshoppers with ginger and sesame, with an excellent, crunchy mouthfeel but not much flavor. They are like tofu in that they pick up the flavors of the seasonings without adding much flavor of their own, says moh.

Board Link: Ever eat a bug?

Phaal is the spiciest, most killer Indian curry there is, say Chowhounds, in large doses almost guaranteed to cause gastrointestinal damage. If you find vindaloo preparations at all painful, treat phaal—sometimes spelled phall—with respect. It’s a dish that strikes even spice addicts as gratuitously spicy. Phaal is more about pain than flavor, says Miss Needle. “While I am addicted to spicy foods,” she says, “I have no addiction to phaal.” She advises even confirmed spice addicts to request a small side order of phaal sauce, rather than risk the edibility of an entire meal. “I’ll have to say that phaal is the most excruciatingly spicy concoction I’ve ever tasted,” says Miss Needle. “It’s not fun.”

Board Link: Phall or Tindaloo…who has tried?

The essence of the belostomatid beetle, known in Vietnamese as ca cuong, is a Vietnamese condiment used to gently perfume fish sauce (nuoc mam) and remove some of the fishiness. It smells like soft perfume, says phan1—similar to jasmine or rose water. It’s hard to believe this floral liquid comes from a beetle! Actually, most modern ca cuong available on the market is synthetic, though it’s chemically identical to the beetle extract, says septocaine_queen. You can probably buy it in a good Asian supermarket—look for a clear liquid in a bottle with a dropper. Only a few drops are necessary to mellow out an entire portion of nuoc mam.

Board Link: Help identifying a Vietnamese ingredient!

The strong, intense flavor of some licorice makes for two strongly divided camps of lovers and haters. Salted licorice is even weirder and more intense—and it finds even fewer devotees than regular licorice, even among those who really want to like it. Licorice comes in unsalted, salted, and even double-salted varieties.

What’s with the salt? It certainly heightens the licorice flavor, says MMRuth, a licorice-lover. Her favorites are double-salted Dutch licorice and licorice toffee from England. If you can, try just a bit before you invest in a whole jar, she says—it’s a very unusual taste, and you might not like it, even if you really want to. rockycat, another licorice-lover, received a gift of imported licorice from her devoted husband. Unfortunately, it was of the double-salted variety, and though she really wanted to like it, she found it inedible.

rHairing, who is half Danish, particularly favors Konsul Salmiak Pastillen salt licorice. “My sister craved it during her first pregnancy,” says rHairing. “I am wondering now if it helped with queasiness. To this day, though, my friends who have been brave enough to try it, immediately spit it out.”

Board Link: Licorice